Flying-machine



W. P. THOMPSON.

FLYING MACHINE.

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W. P. THOMPSON.

FLYING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED MAR.25.1919.

1,851,976, PatentedSept. 7,1920.

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WILLIAM PHILLIPS THOMPSON, OF LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND.

FLYING-MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. '7, 1920.

Application led March 25, 1919. Serial No. 285,099.

To all whom t may Concern Be it known that I, WILLIAM PHILLIPS THOMPSON, subject of the King of Great Britain, residing at Liverpool, in the county of Lancaster and Kingdom of England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Flying-Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention is designed as an improvement or simplification of my original Patent No. 1,301,196, dated April 22, 1919. In

the aforesaid patent I had rather a complicated system of pulleys and chains forI working the movable shutters.

Now the present invention is designed to simplify this, and I employ the pressure of the air to move the shutters backward. The invention is best described by aid of the accompanying drawings, in which Figures l and 1a are cross sections of the front and rear of my plane, respectively.

Figs. 2 and 2L are plan views of the front and rear portions of said plane, respectively, and

Fig. 3 is a section through 3 3 of Fig. 1.

In these figures the plane is shown in full lines contracted to the minimum breadth and in dotted lines to the maximum breadth. A-A are the main girders; B-B cross girders having ball or roller races or runs C-*C attached thereto on which the balls or rollers D of the shutters E and F run. The ends of the shutters are formed with light side plates, and the ends of these side plates when the shutters are fully retracted can come almost or quite up against the main girders as shown at Q. The fourth shutter has valved holes, hereinafter more carefully and fully described, for air to enter and there are holes through the center of the two main girders to pass wind into the hind shutter. I have shown only eight rollers on the front shutter and eight on the rear one, but there can be more or less. There are also terminal strengthening pieces G and H, respectively, at the outer ends of the movable shutters. Through the front nose of the various shutters, I pierce somewhat conical holes I both for ventilation and for the cord hereafter described to go through. Attached to the strengthening piece H is a hook R, to which a cord passing over the pulley L and not shown is fixed. Near the front end of the hind shutl'ers two hooks S are fixed with a similar cord also passing over the pulley L. These are used to pull the two shutters forward while the force of the wind normally causes them to assume the position farthest to the rear. When, however, the front cord is pulled, it draws the front shutter out to the position shown in dotted lines, and the same way when the cord for the hind shutter is released the wind passing through the central holes causes the hind shutter to be propelled back as far as the cords will allow it, or into the position shown in dotted lines. As the front shutters are of different length and have shorter travel than the hind ones, I have two pulleys L in each sheath of slightly different diameter, one for the front shutter and one for the rear. The upper wing is similarly fixed by wires N passing over the pulleys and coming down to the same Winches. The upper plane is staggered as regards the lower plane as usual,

and the vertical sides ofthe shutters are made parallel through their entire extent so that they are always nearly touching the side girders. Also they are nearly touching above and below the fixed coverings P of the central portion of the wing. The fixed coverings cover the portion between the main girders. The covering of the nose and tail of the shutters is fixed to the side pieces, but the continuation of the shutters toward the center of the machine is supported in ball races in the manner already described in Patent No. 1,301,196, dated April 22, 1919.

The mode of action is as follows In rising the front shutters are pulled out to their fullest extent, but the cords of the hind shutters are released so that the hind shutters also go out to their fullest extent through the pressure of the wind. When thermachine is up a considerable height, the pilot (or observer, if there be two men) commences slowly to wind in the shutters by letting out the cords of the front shutters .and drawing in the cords of the hind shutters. This can be done by varying the diameters of the drums on which the cords are wound, so that a single crank can do the entire lot. This goes on until the wing is suiiiciently contracted in width, or assumes the form shown in full lines in the drawing. The front nose may have holes around the cord with a valve attached to the cord so that when the cord is pulled, these valves will stand a little off the nose and allow free entrance of air. The machine has preferably a rather more powerful elevator at the tail than usual, so as to counteract the difference of position in the center of resistance of the wind, especially where I have only a shutter at the rear'end and an ordinary nose at the front. This machine is hardly any heavier than the slower machines with the width of the wings fixed and it has the additional advantage that kwhen furled and going at a great speed the whole of the strength of the shutters is utilized for strengthening the machine against the excessive pressure of the air.

I declare that what I claim is 1. In an aeroplane a wing or plane for aeroplanes of variable width having pieces forming extension of the wing in the direction of the line of flight and sliding relative to the fixed portion of the plane and having surfaces exposed to the wind, positive meansI for driving the said sliding pieces forward when required actuated from the fuselage, and means for exposing the front surfaces of the hind extensions to the action of the wind.

2. In a wing or plane for aeroplanes of variable width, shutters sliding on the fixed portion 0f the plane in a direction parallel with the line of flight, cords for drawing the shutters forward worked from the fuselage, and means for bringing a strong pressure of the wind against the front surfaces of the hind shutter to press it back.

3. In an aeroplane having main girders and side girders, the combination of the central coverings between the main girders fixed to the side girders, and nose and tail boxes in spaces between the side girders traveling on projections on the said girders, coverings fixed to the sides of the nose and tail boxes and flexible covering continuations of the shutters stretched and traveling between ball bearings in tubes attached to the side girders.

4. In an aeroplane wing, the combination of main and cross girders, nose and tail boxes and their continuations between the side girders traveling on races on the side girders, cords for positively pulling them forward and holding them in the forward position, and means for admitting pressure of wind on the front of the tail box and of withdrawing the forward pulling strain on each box when it is required to move backward.

5. A tail box formed of side plates, means for easy movement, and coverings fixed to the side plates and open front, and means for propelling it forward, and means for bringing a strong pressure of wind against it, tending to drive it backward.

6. Ina variable wing, main girders, side girders having pulleys at their forward ends, traveling tail boxes, means for admitting a strong pressure of air into the tail boxes from the front, and cords from tail boxes passing over said pulleys.

7. In a variable wing, main girders, side girders having pulleys at their forward ends, traveling nose and tail boxes, adjustable openings in front, and a tail having an open front, and cords from nose and tail boxes passing over said pulleys.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto signed my name this 28 day of February 1919, in

Witnesses:

LLEWELLXN JONES, WILLIAM vHENRY BEEsToN. 

